Team Culture
Team culture -- the way in which the team comes together to define a performance personality -- is very much influenced by the approach taken to implement an HR function. The more cultural development is integrated into the day to day activities of HR -- including formal team events and celebrations, the more a positive culture develops that helps feed that feeling of excellence that should permeate the office environment.
Well established companies like McDonalds, Microsoft, Google, GE, etc have cultural ambiance you can pick up on when you enter their facilities -- you want this for your Company. It greatly accelerates the ramp time of new employees, it separates your team from its competitors, it deepens the commitment to success all team members have. This section will explore some key areas of culture that are worth proactively developing and will also discuss a bit about how culture often develops on its own.
Culture at PlateSpin
From a personal perspective, establishing a definable culture was very important to me when we formed PlateSpin. Prior to PlateSpin, I worked with several companies (OfficeSmiths, Fulcrum, FloNetwork) where positive culture was a big element of what made the job enjoyable and what helped make the business a success overall. How to create a positive experience for my business was unclear, but looking back at it, PlateSpin's team culture was exceptional and very much contributed to the level of business success we had.
Our business was highly successful -- therefore creating a rewarding environment for most everyone, but we still had to work to create the kind of culture we wanted. Some key things that we did to create the right culture for us included encouraging team-wide activities, committing to regular team lunches, away trips outside the work environment, lots of communication about the state of the business, rewards for exceptional performance, diversification of staff hiring, promotion of quality people, open door policy for senior management and more. We were built top-down to be successful which created the right drive-forward culture that many businesses do not have. One key element was also the early formation of an HR function and the related processes, almost from the start - perhaps one of the differences that allowed us to reach the heights that we did.
Fundamentals
Although there may not be a specific formula for team culture that works for everyone, there are some fundamentals that seem relevant:
- Keep politics out of the business environment -- many businesses quickly get mired in office politics which brings down the positive culture quickly. People start communicating less, worry more about covering themselves than helping the business succeed, they start working against the goals set out -- even if without realizing it.
- Communicate and then communicate more -- it's surprising how many times management makes the assumption that the team does not need to know an important piece of information. Like any secret, once it comes out at a later point, there is usually some fallout from it. It is important to establish trust in the work environment, let the team know that they will always be one of the first to know important issues that affect the business. The team needs to know that it can be counted on to rally around whatever the issues are. Managing from a secretive pillar starts to drive the politics higher which creates the wrong kind of culture.
- Establish a mature business environment -- the team needs to know that management will act in a mature way to what it is told. If a project is behind, or an error is made, people are not punished or criticized first as an automatic response. When that happens -- surprise surprise, suddenly management is as in-the-dark about what is going on as the team is. Trust and maturity go hand-in-hand -- the team should be able to rely on the experience of management to properly handle negative issues and guide the team towards a positive resolution. If the first things that happen result in pushing people aside, natural tendencies to hide bad news surface. If this is your culture, don't become a public company -- your stock will no doubt under perform.
- Open the doors - The open door policy is always a good thing to state to everyone, but to actually demonstrate the door is really open is another thing altogether. As a senior manager, the team should feel you are approachable at all times -- a simple way is to make sure you are visible in the office environment versus always hiding at your desk or in meetings. Where possible, be concerned and involved in the lives of the team -- not always easy to do, but it can go a long way to shorten the inevitable gap that exists between senior management and everyone else. It brings a sense of humanity to the office, a sense that although everyone is equal it is ok that some have more responsibilities than others.
- Help the team get to know each other - More than just everyone's names, people should have a good understanding of what each others roles and responsibilities are. Ideally, everyone would have access to the job description and high level objectives of everyone they work with. It helps to let people know the boat is rowing in one direction -- it helps to let people know what their neighbors are doing and why. Human nature tends to direct people to be suspicious so openness tends to reduce the effectiveness of a suspicious nature.
If the fundamentals are managed well, the right type of culture tends to emerge. The work environment is place people want to be and the team thrives on the success of the whole. if the fundamentals are mismanaged, the culture tends to turn negative and few people perform at their true potential.
When Culture Goes Bad
Sometimes a few people are at the center of negative business culture. They come with a set of experiences and 'best practices' that conflict with how the business has been managed so far. They bring a new sense of how things should be done and work hard to unravel many of the positive things that may already exist -- often without realizing the impact on the people around them. Human tendencies take over and before it can be stopped, your business is not a pleasant place to work.
One very direct way to deal with this is the removal of the offending person or people. What is very effective is decisive decision making -- don't wait. Don't get caught up in the 'should have done that earlier' trap -- do it now. It is so rare that the loss of any one person becomes fatal for a business -- especially someone who is bringing down culture overall -- their removal often results in a renaissance of renewed enthusiasm for the success of the business. It also demonstrates that the business leaders are prepared to make hard decisions and support the changes needed to always be moving forward.
The Role of Human Resources (HR)
A formalized HR function can be a key element in establishing the type of culture you may want for your organization. If nothing else, HR can act as a confidant for an employee to discuss issues that challenge their interests in working for the Company. In fact, regardless of how effective the 'open door' policy is for senior management, HR is often most aware of the issues that affect overall morale and often draw attention to an issue before anyone else hears about it.
HR is an ideal focal point for planning and implementing programs that directly address the changes that might be needed to bring the team from a point of negative culture to a more positive one. HR can act as a rally point for change, a voice of reason between departments (conflict) and in some cases, the first ones to become aware of negative developments -- often earlier than the CEO or any individual manager.
HR is often the organizer of social activities, bringing fun to the office where fun sometimes is not. They can help generate enthusiasm for work life, doing the small things that no one else has or will take the time to do. The more a team gets to know each other, the better they ultimately work together chasing the key goals.
HR is also responsible for equity, fair play and a variety of other formal and informal rules related to local employment law. It's important to establish where you want to be in this area -- pick a target that exceeds what your local geography says is the minimum -- if your Company is striving for global domination, it's hard to do that with a team that is managed to the minimum standards.
Measuring Culture
How many people show up for Company functions -- how many people respond to internal surveys looking for feedback, how many people volunteer for extra projects (versus being forcibly nominated)? Negative cultured teams tend to operate in isolation, coming to work, going home, without much thought about the bigger picture. Positive cultures show themselves in terms of how much participation occurs in all aspects of work. If you feel unsure about what type of culture you have, organize an off-site event -- even something simple as going out to a movie, and see how many people want to go.
If you are fighting an overtly negative culture, you may need to bring in a 3rd party to help assess what is going on. Skilled facilitators will make sure feedback is forthcoming and set out a plan to help turn the boat in a different direction.